How To Remove Special-offers.online Pop-ups (Virus Removal Guide)

The Special-offers.online pop-ups are a social engineering attack that tries to trick users into subscribing to its push notifications so that they can send you unwanted advertisements directly to your desktop.

These Special-offers.online pop-up ads are caused either by malicious advertisements on the sites you visit or adware. This guide was written to help Windows users remove malware from their devices, if your just looking for a way to block the Special-offers.online redirect on a specific site, then you can use a free browser extension like Adblock. When it comes to adware, these malicious programs are bundled with other free software that you download off of the Internet. Unfortunately, some free downloads do not adequately disclose that other software will also be installed and you may find that you have installed adware without your knowledge.

Once a malicious program is installed, whenever you will browse the Internet, unwanted advertisements from Special-offers.online will pop-up. These Special-offers.online ads will display a “To access the content, click Allow! If you are 18+ tap Allow” message, asking you to subscribe to notifications from this site. If you click on the “Allow” button, then you will start seeing unwanted pop-up ads from Special-offers.online on your desktop even when your browser is closed.

You should always pay attention when installing software because often, a software installer includes optional installs. Be very careful what you agree to install.Always opt for the custom installation and deselect anything that is not familiar, especially optional software that you never wanted to download and install in the first place. It goes without saying that you should not install software that you don’t trust.

The below instructions are for Windows users, however we also have an Android Guide and a macOS Guide which should help clean up your device.

How to remove Special-offers.online redirect (Removal Guide)

This malware removal guide may appear overwhelming due to the amount of the steps and numerous programs that are being used. We have only written it this way to provide clear, detailed, and easy to understand instructions that anyone can use to remove malware for free. Please perform all the steps in the correct order. If you have any questions or doubt at any point, STOP and ask for our assistance.

STEP 1 : Uninstall the malicious programs from Windows

In this first step, we will try to identify and uninstall any malicious program that might be installed on your device.

Go to “Programs and Features”.

Windows 10

On the Start menu, type Control Panel in the search box and select “Control Panel” from the results.

When the “Control Panel” window opens click on the “Uninstall a program” option under “Programs” category.

Windows 8

Right-click on the Start button in the lower-left corner and select “Programs and Features”. This will take you directly to your list of installed programs.

If you can’t find the Programs and Features in the Start menu, type “programs and features” into the search bar at the bottom of the Start window, then click the “Programs and Features” result.

If you don’t have a Start button, you are likely running Windows 8 instead of Windows 8.1. Press the Windows key + X to open the menu instead and select “Programs and Features”.

Windows 7

Click on Start, then select “Control Panel”.Start by clicking on the Start button, then click on “Control Panel”.

If you don’t see “Control Panel” here, type control panel into the search bar at the bottom of the Start window, then click the “Control Panel” result.

When the “Control Panel” appears, click on “Uninstall a Program” from the Programs category.

Find the malicious program and uninstall it.

The “Programs and Features” screen will be displayed with a list of all the programs installed on your PC. Scroll through the list until you find the malicious program, then click to highlight it, then click the “Uninstall” button that appears on the top toolbar.

The malicious program may have a different name on your computer. If you cannot find any malicious programs on your PC, you can skip to the next step

Follow the on-screen prompts to uninstall the program.

In the next message box, confirm the uninstall process by clicking on Yes, then follow the prompts to uninstall the program.

Make sure to read all of the prompts carefully, because some malicious programs try to sneak things in hoping that you won’t read closely.

If you are having issues while trying to uninstall a program, you can use Revo Uninstaller Free to completely remove an unwanted program from your PC.

STEP 2: Use Malwarebytes to remove Special-offers.online malware

Malwarebytes is one of the most popular and most used anti-malware software for Windows, and for good reasons. It is able to destroy many types of malware that other software tends to miss, without costing you absolutely nothing. When it comes to cleaning up an infected device, Malwarebytes has always been free and we recommend it as an essential tool in the fight against malware.

The first time you install Malwarebytes, you’re given a free 14-day trial of the premium edition, which includes preventative tools like real-time scanning and specific protection from ransomware. After two weeks, it automatically reverts to the basic free version that will detect and clean up malware infections only when you run a scan. It is important to note that Malwarebytes will run alongside antivirus software without conflicts.

When Malwarebytes has finished downloading, double-click on the mb3-setup-consumer-x.x.x.xxxx.exe file to install Malwarebytes on your PC. In most cases, downloaded files are saved to the Downloads folder.

You may be presented with an User Account Control pop-up asking if you want to allow Malwarebytes to make changes to your device. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.

Follow the on-screen prompts to install Malwarebytes.

When the Malwarebytes installation begins, you will see the Malwarebytes Setup Wizard which will guide you through the installation process. To install Malwarebytes on your PC, click on the “Agree and Install” button.

Click on “Scan Now”.

Once installed, Malwarebytes will automatically start and update the antivirus database. To perform a system scan, click on the “Scan Now” button.

Wait for the Malwarebytes scan to complete.

Malwarebytes will now start scanning your computer for adware and other malicious programs. This process can take a few minutes, so we suggest you do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan to see when it is finished.

Click on “Quarantine Selected”.

When the scan has completed, you will be presented with a screen showing the malware infections that Malwarebytes has detected. To remove the malicious programs that Malwarebytes has found, click on the “Quarantine Selected” button.

Reboot your computer.

Malwarebytes will now remove all the malicious files and registry keys that it has found. To complete the malware removal process, Malwarebytes may ask you to restart your computer. When the malware removal process is complete, you can close Malwarebytes and continue with the rest of the instructions.

STEP 3: Use HitmanPro to scan for malware and unwanted programs

HitmanPro is a second opinion scanner that takes a unique cloud-based approach to malware scanning. HitmanPro scans the behavior of active files and also files in locations where malware normally resides for suspicious activity. If it finds a suspicious file that’s not already known, HitmanPro sends it to the their clouds to be scanned by two of the best antivirus engines today, which are Bitdefender and Kaspersky.

Although HitmanPro is shareware and costs $24.95 for 1 year on 1 PC, there is actually no limit in scanning. The limitation only kicks in when there is a need to remove or quarantine detected malware by HitmanPro on your system and by then, you can activate the one time 30 day trial to enable the clean up.

When HitmanPro has finished downloading, double-click on “hitmanpro.exe” (for 32-bit versions of Windows) or “hitmanpro_x64.exe” (for 64-bit versions of Windows) to install this program on your PC. In most cases, downloaded files are saved to the Downloads folder. You may be presented with an User Account Control pop-up asking if you want to allow HitmanPro to make changes to your device. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.

Follow the on-screen prompts.

When HitmanPro starts you will be presented with the start screen as shown below. Click on the “Next” button to perform a system scan.

Wait for the HitmanPro scan to complete.

HitmanPro will now begin to scan your computer for malicious programs. This process will take a few minutes.

Click on “Next”.

When HitmanPro has finished the scan, it will display a list of all the malware that the program has found. Click on the “Next” button to remove the malicious programs.

Click on “Activate free license”.

Click on the “Activate free license” button to begin the free 30 days trial and remove all the malicious files from your PC. When the process is complete, you can close HitmanPro and continue with the rest of the instructions.

STEP 4: Double-check for malicious programs with AdwCleaner

AdwCleaner is a free popular on-demand scanner which can detect and remove malware that even the most well-known anti-virus and anti-malware applications fail to find. While the Malwarebytes and HitmanPro scans are more than enough, we’re recommending AdwCleaner to users who still have malware related issues or just want make sure their PC is 100% clean.

Double-click on the file named “adwcleaner_7.x.x.exe” to start AdwCleaner. In most cases, downloaded files are saved to the Downloads folder. You may be presented with a User Account Control dialog asking you if you want to run this file. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.

Click on “Scan Now”.

When AdwCleaner will start, click on the “Scan Now” button to perform a system scan.

Wait for the AdwCleaner scan to complete.

AdwCleaner will now scan your PC for malicious files. This process can take a few minutes.

Click on “Clean & Repair”.

When AdwCleaner has finished it will display a list of all the malware that the program found. Click on the “Clean & Repair” button to remove the malicious files from your device.

Click on “Clean & Restart Now”

When the malware removal process is complete, AdwCleaner may need to restart your device. Click on the “Clean & Restart Now” button to finish the removal process.

(OPTIONAL) STEP 5: Reset the browser settings to their original defaults

If your PC is being redirected to the Special-offers.online site, we will need to reset the web browser settings to their original defaults. This step should be performed only if your issues have not been solved by the previous steps.

Google Chrome

Google Chrome has an option that will reset itself to its default settings. Resetting your browser settings will reset the unwanted changes caused by installing other programs. However, your saved bookmarks and passwords will not be cleared or changed.

Open Chrome’s “Settings” menu.

Click on Chrome’s main menu button, represented by three horizontal lines. When the drop-down menu appears, select the option labeled “Settings“.

At the bottom, click “Advanced”.

Chrome’s “Settings” should now be displayed in a new tab or window, depending on your configuration. Next, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the “Advanced” link (as seen in the below example).

Under the section “Reset,” click “Reset”.

Chrome’s advanced settings should now be displayed. Scroll down until the “Reset and clean up” section is visible, as shown in the example below. Next, click on the “Reset settings to their original defaults” button.

Confirm by clicking “Reset”.

A confirmation dialog should now be displayed, detailing the components that will be restored to their default state should you continue on with the reset process. To complete the restoration process, click on the “Reset Settings” button.

Mozilla Firefox

If you’re having problems with Firefox, resetting it can help. The reset feature fixes many issues by restoring Firefox to its factory default state while saving your essential information like bookmarks, passwords, web form auto-fill information, browsing history and open tabs.

Go to the “Help” menu.

Click on Firefox’s main menu button, represented by three horizontal lines. When the drop-down menu appears, select the option labeled “Help“.

Click “Troubleshooting Information”.

From the Help menu, click on “Troubleshooting Information“.

If you’re unable to access the “Help” menu, type about:support in your address bar to bring up the Troubleshooting information page.

Click on “Refresh Firefox”

Click the “Refresh Firefox” button in the upper-right corner of the “Troubleshooting Information” page.

Confirm.

To continue, click on the “Refresh Firefox” button in the new confirmation window that opens.

Click on “Finish”.

Firefox will close itself and will revert to its default settings. When it’s done, a window will list the information that was imported. Click on the “Finish“.

Your old Firefox profile will be placed on your desktop in a folder named “Old Firefox Data“. If the reset didn’t fix your problem you can restore some of the information not saved by copying files to the new profile that was created. If you don’t need this folder any longer, you should delete it as it contains sensitive information.

Internet Explorer

You can reset Internet Explorer settings to return them to the state they were in when Internet Explorer was first installed on your PC.

Go to “Internet Options”.

Open Internet Explorer, click on the gear icon in the upper right part of your browser, then select “Internet Options“.

Select the “Advanced” tab, then click “Reset”

In the “Internet Options” dialog box, select the “Advanced” tab, then click on the “Reset” button.

Microsoft Edge

Right-click on the Start button in the lower-left corner and select “Apps and Features“. This will take you directly to your list of installed programs.

Find Microsoft Edge, then select “Advanced Options”.

The “App and Features” screen will be displayed with a list of all the programs installed on your PC. Scroll through the list until you find “Microsoft Edge”, click it, and then click on the “Advanced options” link.

Click on “Reset”.

The “Advanced Options” screen will now be displayed. Scroll down until the “Reset” section is visible, as shown in the example below. Next, click on the “Reset” button.

Your PC should now be malware free, and there should not be any Special-offers.online pop-ups. If you are still experiencing problems while trying to remove Special-offers.online adware from your device, please do one of the following:

HitmanPro.Alert prevents good programs from being exploited, stops ransomware from running, and detects a host of different intruders by analyzing their behavior. HitmanPro.Alert will run alongside your current antivirus without any issues.

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